The NSW State Government has set five-year housing targets for 43 Local Government Areas in the Greater Sydney, Central Coast, Lower Hunter, Greater Newcastle, and Illawarra-Shoalhaven regions and one target for regional NSW, including Lane Cove.
These targets replace targets set by the Greater Sydney Commission for 2021-22 to 2025-26.
The new 5-year housing targets set the minimum expected growth for each of the 43 LGAs and set the trajectory for NSW to meet its commitment of delivering 377,000 new homes, aligning the targets to the commitment of local, state and federal governments to the National Housing Accord.
Ten and 20-year targets will be developed in the near future.
Lane Cove Council’s Housing Target
Lane Cove Council‘s Target for the period 2025 to 2029 is 3400 new homes.
How Did the NSW Dept of Planning Arrive at this Figure?
The method applied measured planned and projected new homes using the latest available data and supply forecasts.
Planned new homes
Planned new homes are measured from the expected number of new homes to be completed over 5-years, under current market conditions (baseline supply).
These homes are currently under construction, approved but yet to commence, under assessment or planned for delivery by June 2029. The estimate of planned new homes is based on the 2023 Sydney Housing Supply Forecast.
The 2023 Sydney Housing Supply Forecast is a point in time estimate, as at December 2023 and is updated each year to reflect new planning reforms over the previous 12 months.
Projected new homes
Projected new homes are measured from the expected number of new homes to be completed over 5 years from planning reforms to allow for more diverse and well-located homes.
These projections were measured by modelling, for each reform, including:
Total dwelling capacity – the number of additional dwellings that could theoretically be built under proposed planning controls and zoning.
Total expected dwellings per year – the number of homes expected over the medium term, and per year, based on the program scope, design, timing, dwelling type and development approval and construction timeframes.
Does This Include Affordable Homes Targets?
No — the target for each local government area is for a total number of new homes; there isn’t an affordable housing target within each local government area. The Department of Planning notes that councils are encouraged to have a local affordable housing scheme in place to increase the delivery of affordable homes within their local communities.
How Will The NSW Department of Planning Monitor Housing Targets?
It looks like a name and shame programme with NSW Planning noting they will publicly monitor progress towards and delivery against housing targets on its website.
Will The Targets Increase Once The NSW Government Introduces its Planning Reforms?
No – the additional new homes expected from the introduction of the Transport Oriented Development and low- and mid-rise housing reforms have been factored into the targets.
What Were the Previous Housing Targets for Lane Cove Council?
A spokesperson for the NSW Department of Planning provided the following information to In the Cove:
“The previous and new Housing Targets for Lane Cove Council can be found in the table below.
| Local Government Area |
Greater Sydney Commission Target 0-5 years (FY17-21) |
Greater Sydney Commission Target 6-10 years (FY22-26) | NEW Target
(FY25-FY29) |
| Lane Cove Council | 300 | 3,500 | 3,400 |
A robust, evidence-based methodology was used to calculate the new housing targets.
This included the latest data on housing activity, existing and planned infrastructure, construction timeframes, planning reforms, industry and market conditions.
Local adjustments were also made to consider possible capacity constraints and environmental issues such as bushfire and flood risks.”
In May 2022, when discussing the St Leonards South Master Plan the following was noted in the Lane Cove Council Agenda papers:
“It contributes significantly to Council delivering its new 6-10 year housing target (from 2021 – 2026) of 3,000-3,500 dwellings. This is confirmed in the GSC’s Letter of Support (see AT-2) endorsing Council’s Local Strategic Planning Statement. Council’s Proposal is informed by State directions for additional housing, particularly transit orientated development near a mass transit rail/bus/metro hub.
As confirmed by the Greater Sydney Commission (Letter of Support – AT-2), Council must deliver on state, regional and district directions to achieve a dwelling target of 3,000 – 3500 dwellings in the 6-10 year period (2021 – 2026). While St Leonards is not expected to deliver the full target, the Commission notes that St Leonards South has the potential to deliver a large portion of this. Council’s proposal is informed by sound and relevant expert advice on the location of additional housing, including best practice planning and design principles for transit-orientated development near a rail/bus hub, pedestrian focussed and friendly connections, high amenity and services.”
In Lane Cove Council’s Submission to the NSW Department of Planning on the proposed housing reforms they noted the following:
“Since 2012, Lane Cove has delivered 4767 (net) new dwellings, a 40% increase in dwellings within the 10.2sq km Local Government Area (LGA).
The growth was driven by the State Government setting targets for each Council area to deliver additional housing.
The council’s targets were as follows;
2006 – 3,900 over 25 years (Inner North Sub-regional strategy).
2016 – 2021 = 1,900.
2021-2026 = 3,500.
Total = 5400”
Not much has changed for Lane Cove in terms of housing targets. However, these are only targets. These targets may be exceeded if the planning reforms are passed and it becomes easier for multi-dwelling houses and apartments to be developed in zones where they were previously prohibited.
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